The present invention relates to a timetable holder to be placed on a post at a bus or street car stop, comprising a tubular timetable supporting element journalled around the post.
It is known to design a timetable holder as a plate with planar two-piece frame which can be secured to the post by means of straps or clamps. The timetable itself is placed on the plate, whereupon the two frame pieces are locked together.
This known timetable holder is often exposed to wanton destruction. Since the plate presents quite important dimensions in relation to the post and is centrally tightened to the post it is quite easy by leverage action and with relatively weak forces to break the frame to pieces or to loosen the plate from its securing means.
Thus, arises the need of a timetable which is notably more able to withstand destruction attempts.
The too frequent replacement of damaged timetable holders and the need of regularly--e.g. twice a year--changing the time schedule (summer time schedule/winter time schedule) implies for the traffic companies important expenses in material and work, especially because the changing of timetable is in itself time consuming.
Another problem is related to the manufacturing of said known timetable holder. The frame and the corresponding holder parts for lodging the securing means are manufactured by mold plastic material. For the manufacturing, a mold of rather important dimensions is needed and it is a known fact that the manufacturing of molding tools for planar objects is always time consuming, which also influences the production price for the molded object. Furthermore, the manufacturing of the frame presents molding technique related difficulties.
From German published patent application No. 26 01 319 a timetable holder is known in which the timetable itself is placed on the outer face of a prismatic body made of aluminium sheet or sheets, which body by means of a number of different pieces and sleeves is mounted on a supporting tube which again is fastened to the post.
Since the timetable itself is located on the outer face of said prismatic body it is absolutely not protected against weather or against wanton attempts to damage or destroy it. Furthermore, the prismatic body is not journalled around its supporting tube or around the post and thus not very handy, especially because at night the lighting conditions at the bus stop in question may be rather poor and thus, the users have no possibility of rotating the timetable around the post in order to try to obtain better lighting conditions. Still further, since it is made of aluminium sheet or sheets, it cannot withstand strong forces and may thus easily be wantonly damaged. Still further, the whole design is mechanically complicated and thus rather expensive and the work in replacing a new timetable is time consuming, in particular due to the prismatic shape of said body.